Financial Information Important Note: Actual fees for 1998-99 will be available in May, 1998. These pages are a facsimile of an official publication of Southern Polytechnic State University and cannot be changed.  The information contained in this document was accurate at the time of publication.

Student Fees
Matriculation and Non-Resident Tuition fees are established annually by the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia. All graduate students enrolled at the university are required to pay a matriculation fee. Graduate students who are not legal residents of Georgia are also required to pay non-resident tuition.

The Student Activity, Athletic, and Health fees are recommended annually by the university and must be approved by the Board of Regents. All students enrolled regardless of residency status, are required to pay a student activity fee, a Wellness Center fee, an athletic fee, and a health service fee. A full description of the programs and services funded by these fees is included in the Student Handbook, which is available from the Student Activities Office.

Other non-mandatory fees such as vehicle parking, laboratory and special course fees, etc., are established by the university and approved by the President. All fees and other charges are subject to change without prior notice; however, the university will make every effort to communicate changes as they occur.
 
1997-1998 Matriculation and Non-Resident Tuition Fees
 
Fee Payment
Registration and fee payment dates are published in the registration bulletin. Payment of fees and other charges may be made with cash, checks, approved financial aid, and credit cards. Visa, MasterCard, and American Express are accepted on campus in the Business Office and the University Bookstore. Debit cards issued under the HONOR system (ATM) are also accepted.

Students who register for courses and pay appropriate fees using any acceptable method of payment shall be considered enrolled and space shall be reserved in the class(es) for the duration of the term. If a payment is canceled or otherwise withdrawn, the students course schedule remains intact, as does the obligation to the State of Georgia. The student schedule cannot be withdrawn except by a properly approved withdrawal form.

Payment of matriculation and non-resident fees shall not be accepted after the close of business at the end of the official drop/add period. Students are encouraged to register and pay fees as early as possible to avoid potential problems. Students who pay residence hall fees after the official drop/add period will be assessed a non-refundable late payment fee of $30.

Southern Polytechnic State University is an educational institution and, therefore, does not have the resources to perform extensive debt collection activities. For this reason, past due and delinquent accounts may be assigned to the district attorney or a collection agent.

Refund of Fees and Charges
Refunds of fees and charges will be made only upon official withdrawal from all classes through the Registrar's Office. A student who partially withdraws after the official drop/add period does not receive a refund.

The refund schedule is established by the Policies of the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia. The refund schedule will be available in May, 1998.

Residence hall charges are refunded on a pro-rata basis, only by separate application to the Director of Housing and Residence Life. Refunds are subject to the rules and regulations regarding student responsibilities in the residence halls, as outlined in the Student Handbook.

Where applicable, any refunds made to financial aid and scholarship recipients will first be applied to the financial aid program.

Vehicle Parking
Students who are currently enrolled may purchase a parking permit each term at a cost of $10. Permits valid for the academic year (fall, spring, and summer terms) are available at a cost of $30. A limit of one vehicle per student is allowed on campus at any given time. To avoid traffic fines, parking permits must be purchased prior to the end of the first week of classes. For additional information and a copy of university parking regulations, contact the University Police Department.

Graduation Fee
Every student receiving a degree must pay a graduation fee of $25. The final due date for payment of this fee is published in the registration bulletin.

Regents' Requirement for Georgia Residence Classification
A person's legal residence is his or her permanent dwelling place. It is the place where he or she is generally understood to reside with the intent of remaining there indefinitely and returning there when absent. There must be a concurrence of actual residence and of interest to acquire a legal residence.

Because the overwhelming proportion of financial support for the operation of the public institutions of higher education in Georgia comes from the citizens through the payment of taxes, the determination of whether a student is classified as a resident or a nonresident of the state is a significant matter. The fees paid by resident students cover only about one-fourth of the total cost of their education in the University System. Therefore, Georgia taxpayers are contributing three-fourths of the necessary funds to provide quality education for the citizens of the state.

Students are responsible for registering under the proper residency classification. Any student classified as a nonresident who believes that he or she is entitled to be reclassified as a legal resident may petition to the Registrar for a change of status.

To insure timely completion of required processing, prior to registration, a student/applicant requesting a change of residence classification for specific term should file the "Petition for Georgia Residence Classification" and all supporting documentation no less than 20 working days prior to registration for that term. Final determination of Georgia residence classification prior to the final date for fee payment cannot be guaranteed for petitions received after the deadline date. If the petition is not filed by the deadline date, it must be filed no later than 60 days after the term begins in order for the student to be considered for reclassification for that term. If the petition is granted, reclassification will not be retroactive to prior terms.

Legal residents of Georgia as well as certain categories of nonresidents may be enrolled upon payment of resident fees in accordance with the following Regents' regulations:

1. (a) If a person is 18 years of age or older, he or she may register as an in-state student only upon showing that he or she has been a legal resident of Georgia for a period of at least twelve months immediately preceding the date of registration.
  (b) No emancipated minor or person 18 years of age or older shall be deemed to have gained or acquired in-state status for tuition purposes while attending any educational institution in this state, in the absence of a clear demonstration that he or she has in fact established legal residence in this state.
  2. If a person is under 18 years of age, he or she may register as an in-state student only upon showing that his or her supporting parent or guardian has been a legal resident of Georgia for a period of at least twelve months immediately preceding the date of registration.
 
3. If a parent or legal guardian of a minor changes his or her legal residence to another state following a period of legal residence in Georgia, the minor may continue to take courses for a period of twelve consecutive months on the payment of in-state tuition. After the expiration of the twelve month period, the student may continue his or her registration only upon the payment of fees at the out-of-state rate.
 
4. In the event that a legal resident of Georgia is appointed as guardian of a nonresident minor, such minor will not be permitted to register as an in-state student until the expiration of one year from the date of court appointment, and then only upon a proper showing that such appointment was not made to avoid payment of the out-of-state fees.
 
5. Aliens shall be classified as nonresident students; provided, however, that an alien who is living in this country under an immigration document permitting indefinite or permanent residence shall have the same privilege of qualifying for in-state tuition as a citizen of the United States.
 
6. Waivers: An institution may waive out-of-state tuition for: (a) nonresident students who are financially dependent upon a parent, parents or spouse who has been a legal resident of Georgia for at least twelve consecutive months immediately preceding the date of registration; provided, however, that such financial dependence shall have existed for at least twelve consecutive months immediately preceding the date of registration;
 
(b) international students, selected by the institutional president or his authorized representative, provided, however, that the number of such waivers in effect at any time does not exceed one percent of the equivalent full-time students enrolled at the institution in the fall term immediately preceding the term for which the out-of-state tuition is to be waived; (Institutions are authorized to approve an additional one percent for special cases such as superior out-of-state students in selected programs and/or additional international students.)
 
(c) full-time employees of the University System, their spouses, and their dependent children;
 
(d) full-time teachers in the public schools of Georgia or in the programs of the State Board of Technical and Adult Education and their dependent children. Teachers employed full-time on military bases in Georgia shall also qualify for this waiver;
 
(e) career consular officers and their dependents who are citizens of the foreign nation which their consular office represents, and who are stationed and living in Georgia under orders of their respective governments. This waiver shall apply only to those consular officers whose nations operate on the principle of educational reciprocity with the United States;
 
(f) military personnel and their dependents stationed in Georgia and on active duty unless such military personnel are assigned as students to System institutions for educational purposes.